Hi, I am an international teacher who has tutored many students at different levels. I am a native French speaker and a Latinist who has taught both to A level and beyond. I also speak very good Italian and Spanish. My lessons focus on individual needs and where you wish to take your interest in languages from passing a formal exam to improving your conversational language. I take a spoken approach to all my lessons and the grammar and methodology focusing around that as well as the cultural element. I am also happy to taking group learning and any particular needs. There has never been a greater need for learning another language and it amazing what that can do to open your horizons or simply to help your mind grow. My specialism is in teaching translator and interpreting.

As regards Latin: What does a dead language have to offer our contemporary world? Maybe you’d be surprised to learn that Latin is a language where all the key elements of a modern education are championed: for inquisitive minds, it offers a space in which to reflect, challenge and debate ideas and beliefs. The questions of a Cicero are as relevant today as they were 2000 years ago and they don’t stop there. Latin is a gateway to a heritage beyond a language: an empire of thought that benefits our learning of History, Archeology, Literature, Law and Architecture, Medicine and of course the origins of our own contemporary language even if only through etymology.

So, standing in wonder at the foot of a great ancient monument and wondering what those words mean above the entrance or the curious scribbling of the Magna Carta isn’t just a question of deciphering the words and their meaning but entering into another mode of thinking, often critical but also incredibly constructive. It teaches patience, rigour, perseverance and an understanding of different cultures, all vital skills in the 21st century.

But Latin is not without its challenges. The rigorous logical world of cases, declensions, verbs and complex sentence structures can become overwhelming and the student can easily get lost without a guide. Certainly the way in which Latin is taught has developed significantly in the last 50 years. It is no longer taught as it once was: a language of endless vocabulary lists and “off by heart” but a holistic subject that embraces many others. But even when taught in the classroom, it is hard to gauge the input that each individual learner needs.

This is where Latin tuition is incredibly helpful and practical. As a tutor, you can start Latin from scratch or pick up where the student left off or gave up in the classroom. There is no judgment outside the classroom of what the student does and does not know. The tempo is adapted to the individual learner and not the demands of a group following a particular course or method such as the Cambridge method. Sessions can be tailored to individual needs: catching up on missing grammar, building a vocabulary bank, reading literature, scanning poetry or following a specific course for a particular exam. In short, you choose what you need and where you go!

Why Latin? Is it worth it? For me, it is a journey that is still ongoing. Along the way it has taught me to view the world through a softer lens (for after all, the Roman Empire faced so many similar challenges to our own) and to judge less harshly (for there are so many similarities in human psychology then and now).